20121130 1109 Global Markets & Energy Related News.

GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares higher, capped by U.S. fiscal worries
TOKYO, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Asian shares edged up on expectations a deal will eventually be reached to avoid a U.S. fiscal crisis, but investors wary about taking big positions before the year-end were likely to take profits on the rises and buy on dips.
"Concerns about the fiscal cliff linger, but investors still expect a budget deal to be reached by the end of this year. Today's shares will fare well," Lee Jeong-do, an analyst at Shinhan Investment Corp said of Seoul shares.

FOREX-Euro holds below 1-month high on U.S. fiscal blues
TOKYO, Nov 30 (Reuters) - The euro held below a one-month high against the dollar as the market worried about the prospects for a budget deal seen as essential to preventing the U.S. economy from slipping back into recession next year.
"If there is no progress in the U.S. debt talk, the dollar is likely to fall below 82 yen next week," said Masafumi Yamamoto, chief FX strategist at Barclays in Tokyo, noting recent U.S. economic data had not been as solid as before.

Boehner sees no progress in 'fiscal cliff' talks
WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner said on Thursday that "fiscal cliff" talks with the White House had made no substantive progress and criticized President Barack Obama and Democrats for failing to get serious about including spending cuts in a final deal.
Boehner said he was "disappointed" after a phone call with Obama on Wednesday night and a meeting with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on Thursday moved the two sides no closer to an agreement to avert the tax hikes and spending cuts that will be triggered at the start of 2013 unless Congress intervenes.

OIL - Oil up on U.S. budget optimism, Middle East tensions
NEW YORK, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Thursday for the first time this week as investors grew more optimistic that U.S. lawmakers will resolve a budget fight and increasing Middle East tensions stoked fear about potential disruptions to oil supplies.
"The developments in the Middle East keep pumping up the security premium and that is helping push crude higher along with the hopes that a fiscal deal can be reached in Washington," said John Kilduff, partner at hedge fund Again Capital LLC in New York.

US oil imports in Sept down from year ago-EIA
WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil imports fell 539,000 barrels per day from a year earlier in September, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday.
Crude imports averaged 8.375 million bpd in September. Imports of crude oil have dropped year-over-year in eight of the first nine months of the year.

UK oil production rises in October
LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Britain's crude oil production and exports rose in October versus September with the end of yearly field maintenance, while refinery output fell amid seasonal turnarounds, energy department figures showed on Thursday.
Crude oil production was up 20.4 percent in October at 2.851 million tonnes as producing fields returned from maintenance, from 2.368 million tonnes in September.